Sweatshops have been around for centuries, beginning around the late 1880’s. Sweatshops are classified by three main components, long work hours, very low pay and unsafe and unhealthy working environments. Sweatshops are usually found in manufacturing industries and the most highlighted production is clothing corporations, who take full advantage of the low production costs of their products. Many may think sweatshops are a thing of the past but they are still affecting many lives across the nations. There are many ways sweatshops affect lives, but a recent article titled “New study finds ‘more sweatshops than Starbucks’ in Chicago” explains that there are many low wage industry jobs that are violating labor laws in the United States alone. The article also reports how employees who are working in such conditions won’t speak up in fear of the retaliation employers will implement. Analyzing Sweatshops through the lens of the Sociological perspectives will help us better understand the illegal conditions of workplaces that still exist today.
Deadliest industrial disaster in US history and Deadliest garment-factory/ accidental structural failure accident in history Modern sweat shops are problems. After researching the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in Manhattan ,New York and the 2013 Rana Plaza building collapse in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Both industrial suburb, I notice very little change
It was Martin Luther King, Jr. who said, "Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance." Many people in the Western world either do not know or choose to ignore the fact that a massive amount of products that come into North America from faraway lands are produced in sweatshops, including shoes, clothing, and toys. This ignorance over the inhumane and unjust labour conditions happening in factories on other sides of the globe is precisely what keeps these horrifying practices alive. China is home to one of the most enormous and concentrated sweatshop systems in the world. There are approximately 150 million people in China working in ghastly conditions, having to live off nearly unsustainable pay, and being refused benefits
Thesis statement: Sweatshops, when left to operate without government intervention, are the most efficient way of out poverty.
Time and time again, there have been opposing views on just about every single possible topic one could fathom. From the most politically controversial topics of gun control and stem cell research to the more mundane transparent ones of brown or white rice and hat or no hat—it continues. Sweatshops and the controversy surrounding them is one that is unable to be put into simplistic terms, for sweatshops themselves are complex. The grand debate of opposing views in regards to sweatshops continues between two writers who both make convincing arguments as to why and how sweatshops should or should not be dealt with. In Sweat, Fire and Ethics, by Bob Jeffcott, he argues that more people ought to worry less about the outer layers of sweatshops and delve deeper into the real reason they exist and the unnecessariness of them. In contrast, Jeffrey D. Sachs writes of the urgent requirement of sweatshops needed during the industrialization time in a developing country, in his article of Bangladesh: On the Ladder of Development. The question is then asked: How do sweatshops positively and negatively affect people here in the United States of America and in other countries around the world?
A majority of the clothing worn and purchased today in the United States has been manufactured overseas in sweatshops. Since the beginning of factories and businesses, owners have always looked for a way to cut production costs while still managing to produce large quantities of their product. It was found that the best way to cut costs was to utilize cheap labor in factories known as sweatshops. According to the US General Account Office, sweatshops are defined as a “business that regularly violates both wage or child labor and safety or health laws”. These sweatshops exploit their workers in various ways: making them work long hours in dangerous working conditions for little to no pay. Personally, I believe that the come up and employment of these sweatshops is unethical, but through my research I plan to find out if these shops produce more positive than negatives by giving these people in need a job despite the rough conditions.
In a hot, dark warehouse, hundreds of women sit, hours on end, working at rickety old sewing machines. No one talks, the only noise that can be heard is the buzz of the machinery. Occasionally, there will be a cry of pain followed by a sharp “get back to work”. Sitting at one machine is a single mother working to send her kids to school. Her hands bleed and her back aches, but the fear of the alternative is worse than that of her reality. She has been at the machine for 8 hours now without a break so that she can meet the strict quotas that determine her pay. The smell of formaldehyde plagues the air, clinging to her clothes making her short of breath. This is where she will be stuck for years, decades even, working to pay off her debt and
The Benefits Behind Sweatshops Thesis statement: Sweatshops, when left to operate without government intervention, are the most efficient way of out poverty. Introductory rationale: When it comes to social justice issues, most people believe the government needs to solve the problem. Social justice in sweatshops is no exception.
Nicholas Kristof lived in East Asia for many years and observed how living standards improved because of sweatshops. He also made an observation in his wife’s hometown in southern China. Other articles written by Kristof about sweatshops and many other contentious topics, makes him a credible writer for on the topic.
Sweatshops greatly impact the lives of people all across the world; people are forced into incredibly tough labor along with unbearable working conditions. According to the writer of English Blog, “22 million children die annually due to the hazardous conditions in the sweatshops.” (English Blog RSS) Besides the low pay and awfully long working hours, the
There are many views with the problem of utilizing sweatshops in developing economies. Many insist that utilizing sweatshops in developing economies composes exploitation. In certain circumstances, this may be true, but not all. It is an ongoing controversy of demolishing sweatshops and changing the laws of labor. Many anti-sweatshop activist
The author makes two claims to support the idea that cheap labor is needed. In the first claim, the author argues that "sweatshops lead to success". He/she supports the claim by stating that "every prosperous country" has to under go a "cheap labor" temporary period but in the end they
ntroduction Within developing countries, it’s estimated that over 250 million children aged 5-14 are forced to work in sweatshop working conditions (Gaille, 2017). Sweatshops are working environments that are characterized by three major negative flaws: long hours, low pay, and most importantly, unsafe or unhealthy working conditions. Additionally, sweatshops have strict policies in place that restrict workers’ rights, such as limitations on conversation between employees and shortened break times that are usually enforced through violence. According to Gaille (2017), the Department of Labor indicates that 50% of garment factories in the U.S. violate two or more basic labor laws, establishing themselves as sweatshops. This type of labor condition is not limited to the United States, as many Multinational Companies (MNCs) have globalized their supply chain to take advantage of lower labor costs abroad. The existence of sweatshop working conditions has received increased attention from the media, as well as the United States government, with specific emphasis on the apparel industry. Companies such as Nike, Apple, and recently, Forever 21, have come under fire from consumers when the press revealed poor working conditions present in their suppliers’ warehouses overseas. The Apparel Industry Partnership, Fair Labor Association (FLA), and Social Accountability International Advisory Board (SAI) were efforts created by governments in order to mitigate the negative effects of MCN globalizing and utilizing sweatshop type labor. Companies interested in globalization are increasingly pressured to to extend their quality control to not only their company, but also the companies that they do business with, in order to remain strong in the public eye. That being said, research has been done to understand the positive impact of sweatshops on developing country populations. Studies have shown that sweatshops, although looked down upon in developed countries, are the best option for individuals in developing nations. Although poor working conditions are present, it’s been shown that sweatshops help to increase gender equality and unemployment rates. As unfavorable press has surrounded companies that source from low-quality
Sweatshop is defined as a factory or workshop, especially in the clothing industry, where manual workers are employed at very low wages for long hours and under poor conditions. Sweatshops also referred to as the “sweat factory”, creates a hazardous and unhealthy working environment for employees such as the exposure to harmful materials, dangerous situations, extreme temperatures and abuse from employers. Sweatshop workers work for long hours, sometimes without taking any breaks, and these workers are not paid for any overtime hours or the minimum wage, although it is mandatory by law. These conditions are considered risky for any person, but the worst part is that in many countries, children are being forced to work in these sweatshops.
Nicholas D Kristof begins his essay by exploring the ideas that factory jobs in poor countries are actually a means of reduce poverty. As noted in his article, “sweatshops are only a symptom of poverty, not a cause” (paragraph 8, pge 110). Although sweatshop may be harsh, present a better alternative for workers for in poor countries than what is already available to them. The problem he identifies in his article is the fact that many families would rather work at a sweatshop than stay in a dangerous garbage dumps, searching for something to recycle for a change (Kristof). He assumes that his readers know little about sweatshops; furthermore, how difficult and awful the living conditions are. He goes on to say that some of those workers have